Wild Things: The Joy of Reading Children´s Literature as an Adult

An irresistible, nostalgic, insightful-and -consistently intelligent and funny- (The New York Times Book Review)-ramble through classic children's literature from Vanity Fair contributing editor (and father of two) Bruce Handy. The dour New England Primer, thought to be the first American children's book, was first published in Boston in 1690. Offering children gems of advice such as -Strive to learn- and -Be not a dunce,- it was no fun at all. So how did we get from there to -Let the wild rumpus start-? And now that we're living in a golden age of children's literature, what can adults get out of reading Where the Wild Things Are and Goodnight Moon, or Charlotte's Web and Little House on the Prairie? A -delightful excursion- (The Wall Street Journal), Wild Things revisits the classics of every American childhood, from fairy tales to The Very Hungry Caterpillar, and explores the back stories of their creators, using context and biography to understand how some of the most insightful